TV and Sports fans face yet another price hike this month, this time affecting TNT Sports packages on BT / EE TV.
In a move reflective of the broader trend of increasing costs in the TV and broadband sectors, the prices for accessing premium sports content (across all EE TV bundles) have been adjusted upwards.
This latest increase is part of a series of price increases related to TNT Sports – where only a couple of months ago, the price of a direct subscription via Discovery+ Premium also went up (see full details below).
This change means that those who enjoy watching their favourite sports will have to dig deeper into their pockets, with prices increasing by £24 per year for new subscribers (with potential further increases in the future).
The change is part of a bigger picture where the cost of watching TV and using the internet is going up, across the entire industry.
With these new prices for sports channels, many of us are starting to think harder about how much we’re paying for our TV and internet services.
From BT TV To EE TV
The transition from BT TV to EE TV late last year represented a significant pivot in the strategy of one of the UK’s telecom giants.
This move, first announced in 2022, was part of BT’s broader effort to consolidate its services under the EE brand, aiming to streamline offerings and leverage the strong market presence of EE, especially in the mobile and broadband sectors.
When EE TV launched, to much fanfare, it brought some exciting additions – such as the custom Apple TV box that can stream Freeview via broadband.
The prices and bundles (check current deals), however, remained identical to those previously offered by BT TV.
Last year also saw the transformation of BT Sport into TNT Sports, a move that has reshaped how viewers access and consume sports content.
This shift, resulting from the merger between BT Sport and Eurosport, has expanded TNT Sports’ portfolio to include a wide array of sporting events, notably the UEFA Champions League, Premier League football, Premiership Rugby, and more.
TNT Sports has notably secured broadcasting rights for 52 live Premier League matches each season from 2025, positioning itself as a major player alongside Sky Sports.
Following the change, TNT Sports is now available either directly – via streaming service Discovery+, or as an add-on to pay-TV subscriptions such as Sky, Virgin Media – and EE TV.
TNT Sports Price On EE TV Going Up
EE TV, like BT TV before it, offers multiple “flexible” TV bundles that include entertainment, films and sports – and you can switch between the bundles throughout your contract period.
However, you must also sign a 24-month contract for the Broadband, so you can’t cancel EE TV altogether as long as you’re under contract.
The new EE TV platform offers subscribers a choice between three devices – the EE TV Pro Box (and its ‘Mini’ version) – which is identical to the current BT TV 4K Pro Box, and the new Apple TV 4K EE Box.
The newly named EE TV Box is a 4K/HDR YouView-based device with streaming apps and plenty of storage for Freeview recordings.
It supports Dolby Atmos audio, has 4 tuners (so you can record up to three shows on separate channels and watch a fourth), 1TB of storage, a Bluetooth remote, and both WiFi and Ethernet connectivity.
The EE TV Box Pro also supports quite a few streaming apps – Netflix, Amazon’s Prime Video, NOW, Milkshake and more, as well as all the standard catch-up streaming apps – BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4, My5, UKTV Play, S4C, STV Player and BBC Sounds.
With the latest price increase for new subscribers, the EE TV Sport Bundle has escalated from £18 to £20 per month, the Big Sport Bundle from £43 to £45 per month, and the Full Works Bundle from £76 to £78 per month.
At first glance, these increments might seem modest, but they are part of a larger trend of rising costs in the digital entertainment space, which could strain consumer budgets over time.
The affected bundles include:
The EE TV Sport Bundle – Now £20/month
- All 4 TNT Sports channels
- Eurosport 1 and 2
- Discovery+ (Premium – which also includes the streaming versions of Eurosport and TNT Sports)
- The BT TV 4K Pro Box or the new EE-branded Apple TV box
The plan also comes with a one-time activation fee of £41.99.
The EE TV Big Sport Bundle – Now £45/month
- All 4 TNT Sports channels
- Eurosport 1 and 2
- NOW Sky Sports (with all 11 Sky Sports channels)
- Discovery+ (Premium – which also includes the streaming versions of Eurosport and TNT Sports)
- The BT TV 4K Pro Box or the new EE-branded Apple TV box
The plan also comes with a one-time activation fee of £41.99.
The EE TV Full Works Bundle – Now £78/month
This bundle used to be called “VIP” on BT TV. But other than the new name, the bundles are identical:
- NOW Entertainment Membership, which includes Sky’s TV channels such as Sky Atlantic and Sky Max.
- NOW Cinema Membership which includes Sky’s live and on-demand movie channels
- NOW Boost which adds Full HD (1080p) and removes the adverts from on-demand content.
- Netflix’s Standard Plan (Not the Basic one! This is the one with Full HD and no adverts)
- All 4 TNT Sports channels
- Eurosport 1 and 2
- NOW Sky Sports (with all 11 Sky Sports channels)
- Discovery+ (Premium – which also includes the streaming versions of Eurosport and TNT Sports)
- The BT TV 4K Pro Box or the new EE-branded Apple TV box
The plan also comes with a one-time activation fee of £41.99.
It’s worth noting that these price hikes come at a time when no special deals or promotions are available to mitigate the impact on subscribers (however, existing subscribers whose contracts are about to expire, should always call and haggle for a better price).
However, for those considering subscribing to these bundles, there’s a silver lining.
Subscribers who sign up now will no longer be subject to the annual price increase scheduled for March 31, 2024.
Instead, their rates will remain fixed until March 31, 2025, offering a temporary reprieve from this year’s inflationary pressures (most existing subscribers who signed up before March 1, 2023, however – will see their prices increase on March 31, 2024).
Alternative Ways to Watch TNT Sports
While TNT Sports is available through EE TV’s sports bundles, it’s important to note that there are other avenues for accessing this content.
Discovery+ Premium, as a standalone streaming service, offers TNT Sports alongside Discovery’s lifestyle programming.
This option is available directly or through Amazon’s Prime Video Channels, providing flexibility for viewers in how they choose to subscribe and watch.
The price of Discovery+ Premium, which includes TNT Sports, has recently increased from £29.99 to £30.99 per month.
This increase comes after Discovery+ revamped its subscription tiers, introducing a new pricing strategy delineating non-sport content (Basic Tier), sports content from Eurosport (Standard Tier), and the comprehensive Premium Tier that includes TNT Sports.
Therefore, getting TNT Sports via EE TV is considerably cheaper than getting it directly via Discovery+, but of course – it also comes with EE’s broadband for 24 months, which isn’t necessarily the best or cheapest option for everybody.
Additionally, TNT Sports is accessible via competing pay-TV providers like Sky and Virgin Media, offering different pricing structures and packages.
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